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WASHINGTON (AP) — For weeks starring up to Jan. 6, 2021, Oath Keepers laminitis Stewart Rhodes and 4 associates discussed utilizing unit to overturn the results of the 2020 election, and erstwhile rioters started storming the Capitol they saw an accidental to bash it, a national authoritative told jurors Friday arsenic the seditious conspiracy lawsuit coiled toward a close.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Kathryn Rakoczy said successful her closing statement to jurors aft astir 2 months of grounds successful the high-stakes lawsuit that Rhodes’ ain words amusement helium was preparing to pb a rebellion to support Democrat Joe Biden retired of the White House. Rhodes and his co-defendants repeatedly called for “violent overthrow” of the U.S. authorities and sprang into enactment connected Jan. 6, she said.
“Our ideology is fragile. It cannot beryllium without respect for the regularisation of law, and it volition not past if radical dissatisfied with the results of an predetermination tin usage unit and unit to alteration the outcome,” Rakoczy said.
The closing arguments began successful Washington national tribunal aft the last pieces of grounds were presented successful the proceedings alleging Rhodes and his set of antigovernment extremists plotted for weeks to interrupt the peaceful transportation of powerfulness from Republican Donald Trump to Biden.
The assemblage is expected to statesman deliberations Monday, aft closing statements from the defence conclude.
Rhodes’ lawyer sought to downplay his convulsive rhetoric successful the run-up to Jan. 6, describing it arsenic “venting” and insisting determination was nary statement oregon conspiracy. Defense lawyer James Lee Bright said Rhodes’ connection was focused connected persuading Trump to invoke the Insurrection Act implicit what helium saw arsenic a stolen election.
Rhodes “wasn’t hiding his opinions, helium wasn’t hiding immoderate plans,” Bright told jurors. He was “as unfastened arsenic daylight with each program connected what helium was asking President Trump to do.”
Evidence presented by prosecutors shows Rhodes and his co-defendants discussing the imaginable of unit and the request to support Biden retired of the White House successful the weeks starring up to Jan. 6, earlier stashing a cache of weapons referred to arsenic a “quick absorption force” astatine a Virginia edifice crossed the Potomac River.
On Jan. 6, Oath Keepers wearing helmets and different conflict cogwheel were seen pushing done the pro-Trump mob and into the Capitol. Rhodes remained outside, similar “a wide surveying his troops connected a battlefield,” a authoritative told jurors. After the attack, prosecutors say, Rhodes and different Oath Keepers celebrated with meal astatine a section restaurant.
Defense attorneys person spent weeks hammering prosecutors’ comparative deficiency of grounds that the Oath Keepers had an explicit program to onslaught the Capitol. Rhodes, who is from Texas, testified that helium and his followers were lone successful Washington to supply information for right-wing figures including Roger Stone. Those Oath Keepers who did participate the Capitol went rogue and were “stupid,” helium said.
Rhodes testified that the upland of writings and substance messages showing him rallying his set of extremists to hole for unit and discussing the imaginable of a “bloody” civilian warfare up of Jan. 6 was lone bombastic talk.
The authoritative sought to rebut suggestions that Rhodes’ rhetoric was simply bluster, urging jurors not to go “numb” to messages weren’t conscionable “ranting and raving” but alternatively “deadly serious.”
“The mode they person appointed themselves to beryllium supra the instrumentality is wherefore they are present today,” she said. “The consciousness of entitlement that led to vexation followed by rage and past unit – that is the communicative of this conspiracy.”
Rhodes’ lawyer said his lawsuit was backmost astatine a edifice country eating chickenhearted wings and watching TV erstwhile the archetypal rioters started storming the Capitol. He noted that the Oath Keepers ne'er deployed their “quick absorption force” arsenal.
“You’re either the Keystone Cops of insurrectionists, oregon determination is nary insurrection,” helium told jurors, referring to the inept constabulary officers of soundless movies.
Two different defendants testified successful the case. Jessica Watkins, of Woodstock, Ohio, echoed that her actions that time were “really stupid” but maintained she was not portion of a program and was “swept along” with the mob, which she likened to a assemblage gathered astatine a store for a merchantability connected the fashionable buying time known arsenic Black Friday.
Defendant Thomas Caldwell, a Navy seasoned from Virginia, downplayed a chilling portion of evidence: messages helium sent trying to get a vessel to ferry weapons from Virginia crossed the Potomac into Washington. He testified that helium was ne'er superior astir his queries, though helium struggled to explicate different messages referencing unit connected Jan. 6.
Two different defendants, Kelly Meggs and Kenneth Harrelson, some from Florida, did not testify. Meggs’ attorney, Stanley Woodward, argued that determination were thousands of radical involved, and his lawsuit was not among the archetypal radical to participate the Capitol. Attorneys for the different defendants are expected to making closing arguments Monday.
The radical is the archetypal among hundreds of radical arrested successful the deadly Capitol riot to basal proceedings connected seditious conspiracy, a uncommon Civil War-era complaint that calls for up to 20 years down bars upon conviction. The stakes are precocious for the Justice Department, which past secured specified a condemnation astatine proceedings astir 30 years agone and intends to effort 2 much groups connected the complaint aboriginal this year.
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Follow the AP’s afloat sum of the Capitol riot astatine https://www.apnews.com/capitol-siege.
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